Bug Fix
by Chyrstis
Summary: Kinzie has a problem that needs fixing. Should be simple enough. -Post SRIV-


Kind of a mini-sequel to _Take a rest, now take a rest_ where this dynamic is introduced. These stories exist outside of the timeline based in _But I ain't finished I'm devoted_, so any future entries will probably go up as small separate one-shots rather than a collection. Meant to be nothing but silly fun.

* * *

"Strange, eh?"

V stretched her arms and legs, but Troy didn't budge an inch. He kept on checking everything around him as he turned his hands over, and he appeared every bit as uncomfortable as she expected him to be. "Sure. If you want to sum it up like that."

"It's a program," Johnny said, checking the handgun by his side. "It's not supposed to make any damn sense."

"_You would say that," _Kinzie replied, making Troy jump. _"Relax. This is exactly what I told you about before you went in, remember? While you three are in the simulation, I'm monitoring you at my station. This is how we stay in contact."_

V tapped her ear. "Kind of like a radio, but a hint more invasive."

"_It's what works, and you don't mind it that much."_

"When it doesn't involve you trying to whisper sweet runtime specifica-whodads in my ear."

"_Blame Miller for that. Are you all finished yet? These things aren't going to fix themselves."_

V held up a hand. "Whoa, we're missing out on some fun with the uniforms."

Troy glanced up. "Uniforms?"

"Yeah. You can't just run around like...that."

He took one look at the casual clothes he was placed in, then took in what she and Johnny were wearing. "Not happening."

"It's the spandex, isn't it?" V asked, gesturing towards Johnny's body suit. "Not everyone goes for that. Or has an ass like that."

Johnny grinned and Troy rolled his eyes. "A real tragedy."

"But really! If you're going to be running around after us you should at least have something fun on. Super Cop, maybe?"

"V, do you really-"

"What superpowers come with that anyway? Super citations? The stern warning? Ooh, maybe the taser."

Johnny chuckled. "That might be too much."

"Really?"

"Guy with a stick up his ass like that isn't going to use it."

"Hey, this guy has no problem lighting you up like a fucking Christmas tree," Troy shot, looking irritated. "It's just that we've got more important things to do than argue about my goddamn supername. Are we done here?"

"_Yes, are you?" _Kinzie asked in turn. _"If you're that set on 'dressing up' the computer could easily solve that problem."_

Everything went bright for a few seconds as the change took and V laughed when she saw Johnny's familiar purple buttoned up shirt. Her fingers tangled in her short hair, and she nearly spun on her feet. "No fucking way!" Troy had his old uniform too, and was staring at it like it was a foreign object. "Oh, that's priceless, Kinzie."

"_The simulation's had these mental pictures stored for a while now, and after using them against you it's not difficult to summon them back up again. For example-"_

The change happened again and this time it was a bit too bizarre to see Johnny's highlights. Troy got a good laugh out of catching that bit of nostalgia, but stopped when he noticed the serious look crossing her face.

"Maybe this one's a little too out there, Kinzie," she murmured, touching the sides of her hat. _And a little too soon. _

"_Fine. It's there if you ever want to sample it again."_

Soon enough, she was back in her 'super suit' and she breathed a large sigh of relief. "Much better. Hey, Troy? Just slap on a cop uniform and we'll get this done."

"Sooner rather than later, right?"

"Not having fun yet?" He wasn't half as uncomfortable as when he'd come in, but the thin smile he gave her was enough of an answer. "Damn. Johnny and I need to get on top of that."

* * *

"_Okay, so what I want you three to do is investigate an error in the code. They pop up from time to time even with the proper access and override codes from Zinjai, and in spite of the time that Oleg, Matt, and I have put into things sometimes it takes a manual fix to put everything back in order again."_

"So, what's the plan?" V asked, keeping an eye out for Johnny.

"_I need you to get to the island without setting off too many of the primary defenses of the simulation. The fix is a minor tear in the statue that should take little time to repair. Once you initiate contact I should be able to tap into it through your link and complete the repairs myself."_

"Initiate contact. Like touching it?"

"_Yes. I want you to touch it."_

"Like gentle caress or full on-"

"_Just touch the damn thing."_

A car flew down the street and she turned to see an irate Troy yelling at Johnny. Another car was floating in the air by their heads while people fled the scene and she could already hear sirens on the wind. "I think I'm starting to understand why you've kept Asha on this."

"_You pissed it off, didn't you."_

"Not me." Cops pulled up and Troy waved his hands as he tried to get Johnny to step back. The car above their heads hit the unoccupied vehicle with a loud crunch. "Personally."

Kinzie sighed. _"Keep them off of you for as long as possible and just...go. I'll keep it from upping its defenses around the tear."_

"Gotcha. " She whistled and the guys' heads snapped towards her. "Yo, we need to get to the island! The problem's in the statue."

"Pretty far to go," Johnny pointed out, "might end up losing someone."

V jogged over and placed herself neatly between the two. "We won't, because we're not skiing across cars to get to the Broken Shillelagh this time around."

Troy let her keep him back, but didn't bother to hide his scowl. "Well, that's a shame. Ruined your good time for you. Here's an idea. We could always drive there. In a car. Like regular people."

"Regular people?" V and Johnny thought about for a bit, but shook their heads. "We could, but this place was made for more. Nothing wrong with stepping things up a bit, but don't worry, babe. We'll make sure to skip the car surfing," she said, giving him a small peck on the cheek.

Cops flooded the area and Johnny winked at her before taking off. Troy got his gun out, but V grabbed his arm. "What?"

"We're going to learn some jumping. Some real 'free your mind'-type shit."

The objection he gave was lost when she took off, dragging him with her. When they hit the ground next to Johnny on a nearby building, Troy fell right to his knees with a vice grip on her wrist.

"He need a moment?" Johnny tilted his head to the side as Troy steadied his breathing. "Is he going to need a lot of moments?"

Troy's voice didn't carry, but V winced at the venom behind the string of obscenities. "It's cool, Chief. Jumping took me a few tries."

"_Because we had a specific program set up for you,"_ Kinzie told them, her voice popping up again. _"The same program should suit him well and it has the added bonus of reduced stress-"_

"Nah, he doesn't need it." V crouched beside Troy and put a hand on his back. "He'll adjust."

"Sure, sure," Troy muttered, using her to help get back up. "Easy stuff."

"_I'll leave the lesson to you then. Try not to aim for the high buildings, boss."_

Johnny walked over to them and gestured towards Troy. "We cool to move now?"

"Yeah, should be good to go. Going to get the basics down first. Building to building jumps."

"Sure you're the right person to give him the rundown?"

V gasped. "Are you offering to step in?"

Troy blanched and Johnny's smile turned into a full-blown smirk. "No one better, but maybe I should leave that to you. You're good with training wheels."

The mock horror on her face didn't last long as Johnny sped off. "Asshole."

"Don't need to say that twice." Troy let go of her and took a few steps forward. "So, this jumping thing... You've got a good handle on it?"

"Pretty good." She hopped once, then put more force into the second, sending her higher. "It's being aware of how much energy you're putting into it."

He watched her do two more before he gave it a try, landing unsteadily, but on his feet. "Like you're on a trampoline that flexes from time to time."

"Sort of?" V gave it a moment. "You know, that might make sense. It doesn't always bounce, but the minute you want it to it gives." She jumped again and so did he. "The simulation's pretty much prepared to do anything you want it to. Want to go fast? Think it and you will. Want to toss fireballs with your hands? It's got you covered too."

Snapping her fingers wasn't necessary, but it did look cool. The fireball went up into the dark sky after that, blinking out after a few seconds.

Troy nodded and V gave a small bow. "So, what's next on the old lesson plan?"

"Well, we try to follow Johnny. He's probably been bitching to himself for a good five minutes now, but we should be able to get to him in a single jump." She took a few steps back and pointed in the direction she was going. "See that building? Meet you there."

The take off was effortless. Flying through the air was always a trip that she enjoyed and when everything came rushing up she rolled into the landing like it was nothing.

Johnny gave her a single clap in response. "About fucking time. I think I aged ten years waiting for you to stop practicing your moon bounce."

"Shut up. You know how he is. He doesn't want to fuck up, and I don't blame him."

"Basic jumps, though? He's getting worked up over the landing and that's not something he should worry about."

"Tell him that. ...Fuck, maybe I should've."

He chuckled and she punched him in the shoulder. Then they waited.

It took another minute before Troy finally gave it a shot, and V really should've predicted this. Increased momentum was nice, but unless you knew how to deal with it, it was going to carry you. And carry him it did, to the point that he tried skidding to a stop at the edge of their building.

Then he tripped. V's heart shot into her throat and she ran right for the edge, missing him by inches. Squeezing her eyes shut, she waited to hear anything distinct, and sure enough a car alarm began to go off.

"Nice one, V," Johnny said when she opened her eyes again. "Don't think he's going to be happy when he gets back up here."

"_I'd say that everyone fails the first one, but that would be lying,"_ Kinzie added.

V groaned. "Fuck me."

* * *

"-and you can glide like a flying squirrel, jump from a high building and stomp the crap out of shit, or light people on fire by walking by them." V counted her fingers and tapped her chin. "Damn. I think that's everything."

Troy turned the wheel and blatantly ignored the red light. "You think?"

"She's been going through this for months now. Course she ain't going to remember everything," Johnny said from the backseat. He was stretched out and ready to take a nap, because no matter how fast their convertible tried to go it wasn't going fast enough.

_But it'd do for now,_ V noted. Just as long as they got there in one piece.

"We even pushing eighty?"

V put her hands behind her head and glanced at the odometer. "Yes, actually. Committed at least three traffic violations too."

"Nothing like living dangerously," Johnny commented with a yawn.

"We're supposed to fix something, right?" Troy asked. "Because right now I'd think that your jobs are solely to piss me off."

She put a hand on his arm. "Hey, it's a lot to deal with. I know it's tough not to, but it's okay to mess up here. The sim's one of the most forgiving places out there, and I can't tell you how many times I've pulled a cool trick only to crash into the nearest car. But I can always bounce back from it, and try again. That's what counts."

"You never look before you leap."

"Sometimes it's better not to. Might miss something important if I wait."

Troy thought about it, and gave her a smile. "Maybe you're right."

"Even if it leads to further complications?" she joked, smiling back.

He opened his mouth to say something, but the words caught. "I know you. Can't get much more complicated than that."

"Fine, but you think too much. Always have, always will." She unbuckled her seatbelt and stood up, the wind whipping her hair around her face. "So, how about we switch things up a bit?"

Johnny sat up just as she jumped, and she sped along with a laugh.

The edge of the island was coming up as she skipped from car to car, not even bothering with the buildings this time. A particularly nice Temptress tried to stay on the road as she waved at them through the windshield, but her open acknowledgment only made the two behind the wheel panic more.

Purple zipped by and she went into motion. Johnny would try to beat her there, but she wasn't going to make it easy. The issue with this was that he had this kind of competitive taunting down to an art. And was given superpowers on top of that.

So when V tackled him into a nearby store, it was done purely out of joy for the game. The adrenaline rush was icing, as was the dark look he threw her way as soon as he was able to dig out of the debris covering him.

It wasn't much of a lead, but it was one, and he stayed right on her up until the last second when the water came rushing forward. She'd intended to stop, but he had other plans, bowling her right into the digital bay.

The fact that the water registered as cold never failed to amaze her, and for a brief second a faint moment of fear tried to rise up. It never held, however, and when she felt Johnny's arms curl around her it disappeared completely.

The jerk stole a kiss before swimming up and she kicked her legs to tail him.

When she broke the surface of the water, she was in for another surprise. Troy held his hand out to her, his eyebrow raised. "Having fun yet?"

"Fuck yes," she said, giggling as he helped her out.

* * *

"Okay, so we still need to get to Joe."

"Joe?" Johnny eyed Steelport's long-suffering symbol and turned back to her. "This was what Pierce was talking about?"

Kinzie sighed and V tensed. She'd actually forgotten she was there. _"Joe Magarac has a long and detailed history in the city of Steelport, but I'm not going to waste time on that right now. Get to the other side and make your way up the statue. Shouldn't be too difficult now that you're all familiar with the basics." _

"Shouldn't." She winked at the two men standing with her. "No guarantees, though."

"_I'd ask you not to break everything, but even I know better by this point, boss."_

"Even with nothing but water as far as the eye can see?"

"_No."_

"I love how supportive you are."

It took time, and it took multiple tries, but all three eventually jumped, flew, or fell onto the island. A few keystrokes on Kinzie's end got them dry again, and then it was down to their actual task. Finding and fixing this so-called tear.

"Uh, Kinzie? Where exactly is this thing?" V stared up at the large figure and didn't see anything out of the ordinary standing out, but her viewpoint wasn't the greatest.

"_It's pretty high up."_

Troy tilted his head back and whistled. "That's an understatement. Makes me wish I'd tried more rock climbing."

"Eh, fuck that." Johnny walked over to V and crouched down next to her. "We've got a better way. Ready, boss?"

He folded his hands together so she had a platform to put her foot on, and she braced a hand on his shoulder. "Always."

There was flying, and then there was _flying_.

She had to remind herself to find a decent foothold on Joe as she went up and had no choice but to come back down. His shoulder worked well enough, but her boots still slipped enough to cause her to fall on her ass with a solid thud.

"Fuck!"

She couldn't hear them clearly, but both Johnny and Troy had their eyes on her, and when she got back up she gave them a wave.

"Now what, Kinzie?"

"_See anything? I'm actually getting a read on an inconsistency somewhere around the statue's head."_

V took a look at the side facing her, but didn't see anything out of the ordinary. A quick jump onto his helmet didn't show anything either, but once she was on the other side, she noticed a bright glowing light coming from his ear.

"We've got a glowy. I repeat, we've got a glowy."

"_That should be it. Now touch it."_

She walked up to it, bright glowing lines and numbers pulsing from the error, and was grateful that unlike the other glitches this was one that was isolated. That didn't leave her eager to mess with it, however, as she slowly moved her hand towards it.

"_Boss."_

"Fine! Jesus, crack the whip harder already."

Her hand passed right through it, then hooked into the middle. She only had a moment to stare at it before every hair on her began to stand on end. Then the jolt hit.

* * *

"You got her? She's slipping, you've got to watch it."

"Of fucking course I got her! Back off so she can breathe for a second."

The numb sensation that had gripped her left bit by bit, the feeling in everything returning as her sense did, and it felt like someone had popped a firecracker by her head. "Wow," she rasped. "That hurt like a motherfucker."

"It was a fucking sight to see," Johnny said, checking her over. "Lit you up and tried to ping you into the water. Managed to catch you along the way, but...that wasn't pretty."

"So, that burning smell. That's me, right?"

Troy brushed her hair out of her face, and she tried to flex her hands. Only one responded for now. "Your arm's hurt pretty bad. It all happened so fast, I don't think we would've been able to stop it."

"That was a fucking bust then. Say, Kinzie?"

"_Yeah, boss?"_

"Was that normal?"

"_Pretty much, though that one was more aggressive than I anticipated."_

"A little warning would've been nice!"

"_You can handle it. …But that was harsher than the others I've seen Oleg repair. Give me a second."_

The shift in code blinked, then wiped everything clean. V blinked at her untouched hand and punched the air. "God, I love it when it does that."

"_See? Not so bad. Think you'd be up for another?"_

V tapped her fingers on her stomach, and pillowed one of her arms under her head. "What do you think, guys?"

Johnny and Troy exchanged a look and she waited for the argument to start. "Up for sticking your finger in the socket?" Johnny asked.

Troy snorted. "Someone shot me in the ass during taser training. It was one of the newer models too, and they accidentally had it on the high setting. That's not counting the other times the guys used to get drunk and shoot each other on slow nights. I think I can handle it."

She laughed and held up her hand for a fistbump. Both returned it. "Kinzie, I think that's a yes."


End file.
